Previous Winners

MANCHESTER TALENT COMPETITION

Feedback is provided to the Mid-Teen singers from the Manchester Talent Competition.

Manchester Talent Competition: Industry judges have provided feedback to the Mid-Teen acts who took part in the Manchester talent competition at the TeenStar North West England and Scotland Area Final this weekend. The Manchester talent competition gave acts the chance to impress industry judges and a capacity crowd for the opportunity to make it to the national TeenStar Grand Final.

Manchester Talent Competition:See industry feedback below. Please be aware views expressed by judges are opinions and subjective to that particular judging panel. These views in no way reflect the views of the TeenStar competition, and are published with a view to being beneficial to the performing acts.

Manchester Talent Competition Feedback

Betty – Song choice is everything and so choosing to sing such a big song is difficult to impress with, click here for tips on good audition song. Having said that you gave it a good go, which was great, however it is a mountain of a song to control and sometimes it’s not all about trying to show your voice off, click here for more on being creative with a cover. Work on your mic control to keep the volume consistent throughout your performance too, click here for more on microphone techniques.

Balram Rathour – Good song choice, just take care with your diction as it is not always as clear what you are singing click here for tips on singing diction. Also look to develop the dynamics to give more depth to the performance, click here for tips on music dynamics. Work on your breathing more to get even better projection.

Harriet Alexander – Lovely vocal but it needed far more performance, try using the whole stage for example not just a small section, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers. Fantastic image and vocally well delivered just try not to push it too hard and loose the control.

The Outskirts – Well worked harmonies, they very impressive! Don’t forget to smile and express the emotion of the song appropriately, click here for facial expressions and gestures whilst singing. Also look to reach out to each other to show a connection between you on stage. A good arrangement though so well done!

Harriet Boardman-White – You had a good stage presence which showed an air of professionalism, which was brilliant to see. Lovely vocal control in particular hanging on the note. Remember to perform right untill the end of your performance as you missed the opportunity with the instrumental at the end, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers.

Ashleigh Burns – Lots of potential with the song and you connected well with it. It just needs a catchy vocal hook to go to the next level, click here for more on writing that memorable chorus. Great image and overall a very well delivered performance, well done.

Lewis Maxwell – You have good diction and the song has potential but it could be catchier to stick in people's heads as this is so important to have that hit potential, click here for more on writing that memorable chorus. Performance wise you have good movement and expression. Great vocals and a very well delivered performance.

Mid-Teen Manchester Talent Competition Feedback

Miles – Brave song choice as it is an iconic song which we hear a lot of, click here for tips on good audition song. Remember to perform throughout the performance and even more in the instrumental sections, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers. Work on your mic control as getting that mic near your mouth will assist in giving you more projection across to the audience, click here for more on microphone techniques.

Katie Clark – Nice performance, but try to really commit yourself to the performance more. Consider taking the mic off the stand earlier and working the stage as you were very static prior to that point, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers. Vocally just take care to watch you control. Great image and your styling was lovely.

Lara Hickson – The ukulele can be a useful tool as a backing instrument, but it can also be a little thin as a backing instrument so know when to use it, generally it is best for slow tempo performances. Performance wise you need to give more eye contact to your audience as this helps us the audience to connect to you as a performer, click here for facial expressions and gestures whilst singing.

Kathryn McLaren – You have a lovely vocal but you need to bring more performance. As it’s a fluffy, light song look to express that in the performance, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers. Good song choice but the nerves gave a few pitching issues at times. More performance will help you develop your confidence on stage.

Abi Grace – Great to hear you perform your own song, keep writing songs as you clearly have a passion for it. The key to a hit song is the hook and chorus, click here for more on writing that memorable chorus.

Casi Mai – You have super vocals but it’s not always necessary to punch out the majority of lines, let it breathe through the verses and then the chorus will have even more impact when you punch it through. Also look to vary the projection and tone throughout your performance, click here for tips on music dynamics.

Abbie Robinson-O’Neill – Even though you have a powerful vocal don’t be frightened to really close to that mic as you are losing projection at times. Make sure the work on the keys doesn’t stop the flow of the song, click here for advice on performing with musical keyboards.

Feedback for the Manchester Talent Competition

Alana Hanley – Cracking song choice you sung it wonderfully, however as a dance number it needs more movement and energy on stage, click here for more on stage performance tips for singers. Nice image but look to work on developing your vocals as there were pitching issues at times.

Rachelle & Brittany – Make use of the "scream out or shout out" line more as the song has good structure and emotion. It probably needs to repeat one of those lines rather than lyrically changing quite so much to make it more catchy, click here for more on writing that memorable chorus. As performers try reach out and connect with each other more on stage.

Jenna Darrell – You are committing well to the performance but it’s coming across too desperate emotionally sometimes, so look to rein that in a bit. Also think about your image in terms of making an impression, click here for more on music synergy and image.

Tabitha Jade – A much better guitar sound. Backing harmonies could be stronger and the keys aren’t adding an awful lot so perhaps consider changing their involvement. Vocally you change your delivery well to keep the interest going. The chorus doesn’t need to continue so much at the end so look to cut it down and perform an edited version; less is more sometimes.

Lucy Moore – You moved and worked the stage well with super vocal control. Nice scats to give it your own touch, click here for more on being creative with a cover. Work on your breathing though as this can help you immensely going forward.

Jade Edwards – Great job from the dancers to give a fantastic visual backdrop although please ensure you don’t get too close to the lighting and projectors for your own safety. Vocally just take care with your breathing so as not to lose your control. A really enjoyable performance.

Amelia Benoit - Nice classical version of a pop song, which was great to see. Vocally you had such presence and control. Click here for more on facial expressions and gestures whilst singing to convey more emotion aside of the vocal. Lovely image, you looked great on stage, well done!

Harry Davidson – As a male acoustic it is probably best to steer very clear of Ed Sheeran otherwise risk of being dubbed an impressionist instead of as individual artist, click here for more on being creative with a cover. Slow down and look to find your own song not someone elses. Click here for more on microphone techniques and here for tips on singing diction as these techniques will help you to further develop.

Effi Nicki – Nice song choice and a very confident performance with lovely vocal control. Well projected with good tone. A lovely overall performance.

Livvy K – Great song choice and vocal control. Work on your breathing technique a bit more to make your vocals and projection even better. You engaged with the audience with lots of eye contact and interaction so well done for that. A great act to finish the show.

MANCHESTER TALENT COMPETITION

All successful acts from the TeenStar Area Finals will be performing at the Grand Final on Saturday 25th July at The NEC in Birmingham. For more information and to buy tickets click here.

If you’re a teenage singer or songwriter with that it takes to win TeenStar, enter now.

Alternatively, Open Mic UK are now taking entries for their auditions in the summer. Check out more information about singing competition Open Mic UK and enter now!